Partying tenants may be evicted

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Tenants of an infamous Christchurch party house face eviction after another rowdy gathering required police to step in.

Moves are afoot to have the group evicted after yet another night of mayhem in and around the Christchurch property at the weekend.

Dozens of disorderly, drunk teenagers scattered as police responded to reports of fighting in the street on Hands Rd, Middleton, about 1.30am on Sunday.

No-one was arrested but a 17-year-old was taken to hospital with a head injury and underage drinkers were fined, police said.

It was the second time staff had been dispatched to the area in less than three hours after phone calls from concerned residents in the area.

A month ago, tenants at the rental property gave assurances to their landlord that their days of hosting parties at the address were over after a string of police call-outs to the area.

However, police yesterday confirmed they had been called after reports of wild parties at the property nearly every weekend since.

Senior Sergeant Gordon Spite could not understand why the tenants had not been evicted.

"If I owned that place they wouldn't be there now."

Police would speak to the landlord this week to see "what he intends to do about it", Spite said.

Landlord Des Gee said he wanted the tenants out but the situation had to be handled carefully so frightened residents were not terrorised further. "It could get very angry and nasty and I don't want that to happen."

He would talk to the property manager, Eddie Wongeoon, and seek legal advice to see if the tenants could be evicted.

"They are young people and they are a bit silly but it's about time they got their heads screwed on," Gee said.

"I don't like to put people out on the street - I like to give people a fair chance - but they've pretty much gutted me."

Wongeoon, who owns property management company Wongeoon Vast, said he sent a message to one of the tenants yesterday asking them to move out of the property by mutual consent.

If they did not agree, he would escalate the matter to the Tenancy Tribunal, he said.

The tenants have previously told The Press that social media and a problem flatmate were to blame for several of out-of-control parties at the property.

Craig Hunter, 24, and Liam Kelly, 18, had promised to return peace to the neighbourhood after learning which of their friends to trust.

Yesterday, Hunter said there had been no parties at the house since early February.

"We haven't had any parties - we had a couple of drinks."

He would not discuss the prospect of leaving the property until after he had spoken to Wongeoon.